It has almost become a must to appear at competitive and entrance tests in today’s age, be it any stream of study, given the keen interest in different subjects and the ever-increasing competition. With each passing year, there is an evident rise in the number of candidates performing exceedingly well at these tests and hence targeting the limited number of seats available.
One such entrance test taken up at the undergraduate level is NEET-UG. Lakhs of students interested in pursuing medicine as a career fill-up the online NEET application form each year and participate in the test. It is one of the most sought after and challenging tests conducted in the country and has scrapped multiple entrance tests, even that of the JIPMER and AIIMS tests.
The pre-exam jitters are a norm; given the number of registrations, the anxiety level seems to skyrocket. To combat it, the best strategy is fool-proof preparation, hard work and the right guidance.
Attempting NEET Questions Papers
One of the vital factors that determine success at NEET is the regular solving and practising from the previous years’ question paper of NEET. One cannot stress enough the importance of solving NEET previous year question paper before attempting the actual test. It offers a myriad of benefits, such as acquaintance with the format of the paper, exam pattern, marking scheme, typology of questions, recurring topics and more. It also plays an instrumental role in boosting speed and accuracy levels. Consequently, it becomes imperative to solve as many question papers as possible.
In this article, we discuss some points to include in your strategy and follow when you are attempting the NEET question papers.
Analysing the question paper
Take a minute or two to quickly glance through the paper and check for questions. This way, in your subconscious, you are already preparing to come up with answers. Train your mind to follow this exercise right from the time of preparation and not on the day of examination. This is because some students tend to panic, looking at the questions and checking if they know the answer to it or not. Hence, it is always advised to students to make it a habit right from the time of preparation.
Order of preference while answering NEET sections
It is a known fact that NEET is asked for 720 marks and has the following sections – Physics, Chemistry and Biology. The Biology section of NEET comprises the most number of questions – 90 questions (360 marks) to be attempted, followed by Physics and Chemistry with 45 questions each (180 marks+180 marks). While different students have their own strategies for tackling the NEET paper, it is highly recommended to attempt the NEET Biology section first, followed by the Physics section, and finally the Chemistry section.
Hence, the order of answering the NEET question paper must be:
- Biology
- Physics
- Chemistry
Biology must be attempted first since it has the most number of questions, and questions are usually statement based, on definitions etc. It mostly does not require any computations as such and can be answered in less than 50 minutes. Physics must be attempted next as it is deemed to be time-consuming, involving calculations. Lastly, the Chemistry sections typically have the direct type of questions, comparatively less time-consuming. However, this ordering is based on the previous years’ trends and is subject to vary; the preferred order is as mentioned above.
Bubbling the OMR response sheet
Small inaccuracies while bubbling can cause all your efforts spent on answering the question to go down the drain. Hence, have a well-practised hand in bubbling the sheet by practising. Download free online OMR sheets available to practise and carefully allocate time to bubble, either towards the end of solving the question paper or as and when answered.
This was a brief on attempting NEET question papers and different approaches you can inculcate to revitalise your attempt at it. Subscribe to BYJU’S YouTube Channel for more on NEET and relevant content.